The Astronomical Journal (Jan 2023)
An In-depth Look at TOI-3884b: A Super-Neptune Transiting an M4Dwarf with Persistent Starspot Crossings
- Jessica E. Libby-Roberts,
- Maria Schutte,
- Leslie Hebb,
- Shubham Kanodia,
- Caleb I. Cañas,
- Guðmundur Stefánsson,
- Andrea S. J. Lin,
- Suvrath Mahadevan,
- Winter Parts(they/them),
- Luke Powers,
- John Wisniewski,
- Chad F. Bender,
- William D. Cochran,
- Scott A. Diddams,
- Mark E. Everett,
- Arvind F. Gupta,
- Samuel Halverson,
- Henry A. Kobulnicky,
- Adam F. Kowalski,
- Alexander Larsen,
- Andrew Monson,
- Joe P. Ninan,
- Brock A. Parker,
- Lawrence W. Ramsey,
- Paul Robertson,
- Christian Schwab,
- Tera N. Swaby,
- Ryan C. Terrien
Affiliations
- Jessica E. Libby-Roberts
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- Maria Schutte
- ORCiD
- Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Oklahoma , 440 W. Brooks Street, Norman, OK 73019, USA
- Leslie Hebb
- ORCiD
- Physics Department, Hobart and William Smith Colleges , 300 Pulteney Street, Geneva, NY 14456, USA; Department of Astronomy, Cornell University , 245 East Avenue, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
- Shubham Kanodia
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA; Earth and Planets Laboratory , Carnegie Institution for Science, 5241 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
- Caleb I. Cañas
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA; NASA Goddard Space Flight Center , 8800 Greenbelt Road, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA
- Guðmundur Stefánsson
- ORCiD
- Department of Astrophysical Sciences, Princeton University , 4 Ivy Lane, Princeton, NJ 08540, USA
- Andrea S. J. Lin
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- Suvrath Mahadevan
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA; ETH Zurich, Institute for Particle Physics & Astrophysics , Switzerland
- Winter Parts(they/them)
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- Luke Powers
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- John Wisniewski
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, George Mason University , 4400 University Drive, MS 3F3, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA
- Chad F. Bender
- ORCiD
- Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona , 933 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- William D. Cochran
- ORCiD
- McDonald Observatory and Department of Astronomy, The University of Texas at Austin , Austin, TX 78712, USA; Center for Planetary Systems Habitability, The University of Texas at Austin , Austin, TX 78712, USA
- Scott A. Diddams
- ORCiD
- Electrical, Computer & Energy Engineering, University of Colorado , 425 UCB, Boulder, CO 80309, USA; Department of Physics, University of Colorado , 2000 Colorado Avenue, Boulder, CO 80309, USA; Time and Frequency Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology , 325 Broadway, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
- Mark E. Everett
- ORCiD
- NSF’s National Optical-Infrared Astronomy Research Laboratory , 950 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
- Arvind F. Gupta
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- Samuel Halverson
- ORCiD
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology , 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, CA 91109, USA
- Henry A. Kobulnicky
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Wyoming , Laramie, WY 82070, USA
- Adam F. Kowalski
- ORCiD
- National Solar Observatory, University of Colorado Boulder , 3665 Discovery Drive, Boulder, CO 80303, USA; Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences, University of Colorado , Boulder, 2000 Colorado Avenue, CO 80305, USA; Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder , 3665 Discovery Drive, Boulder, CO 80303, USA
- Alexander Larsen
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Wyoming , Laramie, WY 82070, USA
- Andrew Monson
- ORCiD
- Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona , 933 N. Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
- Joe P. Ninan
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research , Homi Bhabha Road, Colaba, Mumbai 400005, India
- Brock A. Parker
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Wyoming , Laramie, WY 82070, USA
- Lawrence W. Ramsey
- ORCiD
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA ; [email protected]; Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USA
- Paul Robertson
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of California Irvine , Irvine, CA 92697, USA
- Christian Schwab
- ORCiD
- School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences, Macquarie University , Balaclava Road, North Ryde, NSW 2109, Australia
- Tera N. Swaby
- ORCiD
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Wyoming , Laramie, WY 82070, USA
- Ryan C. Terrien
- ORCiD
- Carleton College , One North College Street, Northfield, MN 55057, USA
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/accc2f
- Journal volume & issue
-
Vol. 165,
no. 6
p. 249
Abstract
We perform an in-depth analysis of the recently validated TOI-3884 system, an M4-dwarf star with a transiting super-Neptune. Using high-precision light curves obtained with the 3.5 m Apache Point Observatory and radial velocity observations with the Habitable-zone Planet Finder, we derive a planetary mass of ${32.6}_{-7.4}^{+7.3}\,{M}_{\oplus }$ and radius of 6.4 ± 0.2 R _⊕ . We detect a distinct starspot crossing event occurring just after ingress and spanning half the transit for every transit. We determine this spot feature to be wavelength dependent with the amplitude and duration evolving slightly over time. Best-fit starspot models show that TOI-3884b possesses a misaligned ( λ = 75° ± 10°) orbit that crosses a giant pole spot. This system presents a rare opportunity for studies into the nature of both a misaligned super-Neptune and spot evolution on an active mid-M dwarf.
Keywords
